Former England striker Wayne Rooney has said he received death threats when he left boyhood club Everton for Manchester United back in 2004.

After breaking into Everton's first team at the age of 16, Rooney was still only 18 when made the move to Old Trafford in a £27 million ($36m) deal, having rejected a new contract offer which would have been a club record for the Merseyside club.

The exit of a player who had worn a t-shirt bearing the slogan "Once a blue, always a blue" angered the Everton fanbase.

"I got death threats," the 40-year-old said on BBC Sport's The Wayne Rooney Show. "My parents' house was getting spray painted and smashed up.

"My girlfriend at the time, wife now, her house was getting spray painted. I think that's where you have to be mentally strong. The people

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